Field of the Invention
Due to the transition precipitated by major oil companies in which service stations providing gasoline and oil and other services are being converted to just gas and go type operations, a demand for self service, coin operated, 24-hour battery charger and charging system check has been created.
It is well known that the life of a battery such as one used in an automobile, depends upon its being provided with a full charge. A battery which has been over charged, or under charged, and is allowed to continue in this state, does not have the same life expectancy as a battery which has the proper degree of charge. Consequently, the voltage output in all vehicle's charging systems should be checked from time to time to make sure that the voltage setting is correct. For example, a high voltage setting can shorten the light bulb filament life in a vehicle by 50% or more. In modern passenger cars today, most monitoring systems for the entire electrical system consist merely of a warning light that is actuated when the charging of the system stops all together. This in itself does not provide adequate information relative to the state of the battery, for extending, or maximizing its useful life, not to mention the electrical components such as the lights which are associated with the battery and the charging system.